


All Creatures Great and Small

by darkrosaleen



Category: The Terror (TV 2018)
Genre: Canon Gay Relationship, Identity Porn, M/M, Werewolves, ferocious & intimidating werewolf acts like a puppy dog when in wolf-form around love interest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-28
Updated: 2021-01-28
Packaged: 2021-03-13 15:53:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28905921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkrosaleen/pseuds/darkrosaleen
Summary: Billy goes out to the ice one night to find Cornelius, and finds someone else instead.
Relationships: William Gibson/Cornelius Hickey
Comments: 11
Kudos: 17
Collections: Bulletproof 20/21





	All Creatures Great and Small

**Author's Note:**

  * For [scorpiod](https://archiveofourown.org/users/scorpiod/gifts).



As soon as Billy's work ended, he made his way off the ship and down to the dark ice. He was exhausted—they all were, all the time—but there was a restless itch in his chest that wouldn't let him sleep. It was the kind of night when he'd usually seek out companionship, his loneliness craving the pure animal comfort of being near a fellow man. These days, the companion was almost always Cornelius. It was hard for Billy to remember pure, innocent companionship without the burning lust that Cornelius could light in him with nothing but a sideways look.

There was the matter of that sort of itch, too. Not even the biting arctic air could fully quench the fire in Billy's stomach. He wondered if he'd find Cornelius alone, or if he'd have to speak in veiled riddles around the ne'er-do-wells Cornelius spent his smoking hours with. He wondered if it was possible to persuade Cornelius to come back inside before he finished his cigarette; Billy didn't have much patience tonight. An image appeared unbidden in his mind: Cornelius pushing him against the solid bulk of _Terror_ 's hull, feeling pinned by Cornelius's short, delicate frame as if by a great bear. Cornelius would feel hot even through layers of coats and woolens; he was always feverishly warm to the touch. Billy shuddered and bit the inside of his cheek until his prick calmed down.

There was no one in the usual smoking spot. Still feeling restless, Billy decided to wait there for a moment. The air was so cold that it burned his exposed cheeks, but it cut through his agitated state of mind. The constant dark sky made this land feel bewitched, like a fairytale kingdom put under a spell of eternal night.

Movement caught the corner of Billy's eye. Tensing up at the clearly animal-sized creature, Billy's nerves turned to ice when the form of a wolf solidified in the dark.

Billy's heart rattled in his throat. He tried to remain still, hoping that the beast wouldn't notice him in the dark shadow of the ship. Billy's hopes were not fulfilled; the creature locked its eyes on him and froze, then began padding toward him on silent paws. Billy shut his eyes and muttered a frantic prayer. He was mid-sentence when he felt the unmistakable sensation of a canine snout rubbing against his thigh.

Billy's eyes flew open. The creature was nuzzling his leg like a hound greeting its beloved master. It was the wrong color for an arctic wolf, a mottled greyish-tan that reminded Billy of the wolves he'd seen back in England. It was smaller than he expected, holding its slender body low to the ground.

The creature sniffed its way across Billy's leg to his clenched fist, then darted out a careful tongue to lick at his exposed fingertips.

A startled giggle escaped Billy. He wondered briefly if he was going mad from lack of sleep, because the wolf seemed to be acting as docile as a puppy.

Cautiously, Billy moved his fingers to the underside of the wolf's jaw and lightly scratched the fur there. The wolf yipped softly and lifted its head, yielding easily to Billy's ministrations. Its eyes drifted gently shut as Billy scratched the coarse fur under its chin.

"Hello," he murmured, feeling as though some kind of address was necessary. "Easy there, friend. Goodness, you're as sweet as a lapdog."

The wolf's ears twitched. Almost as if it understood Billy's words, it nosed persistently at Billy's thighs. Billy crouched on his knees, and the wolf immediately planted its head on his lap, laying down on the ice. Billy carefully stroked the wolf's head, scratching behind its ears, and the wolf made a dog-like noise and burrowed its face into Billy's thighs.

Billy sank into contentment as he stroked the creature, dragging his fingers through the thick fur of its neck. In contrast with the frigid air, it felt like the wolf burned as hot as a stove. "I came out here to see a friend, but you're good company too. You're quieter, at any rate." The wolf huffed and wriggled closer, shoving its snout into Billy's lap. 

Billy hadn't seen another soul since he slipped down to the ice. It felt like he and the wolf were the only living things on earth, alone under the pitch black sky. The itch in Billy's chest threatened to spill out of him, and he didn't think mother earth—her sky and her stars and her wolves—would think him as sinful as the heavenly Father did.

"I love him," Billy whispered, fingers tightening in the wolf's fur. "He makes me feel safe, and he lights in me a fire like I've never known before. I wish I'd found him down here, but you'll do, little one."

The wolf yipped loudly, and Billy jumped. The beast seemed agitated, and Billy had the mad thought that it had understood his confession, that it was disgusted by the sin in Billy's heart. But before he could be properly pained by that, the wolf got up on its haunches and licked the underside of Billy's jaw. It tickled, and Billy laughed.

"Easy, friend," he said, stroking down the wolf's sides. "Good boy. You are a boy, aren't you? What a beautiful boy you are. I like a slender lad."

The wolf stayed with Billy for a while longer, but eventually it got to its feet and trotted off in the direction of the north star, tail raised at a jaunty angle. Removed from the wolf's warm body and fur, Billy's fingers were near numb; he'd never hear the end of it if he caught frostbite sitting outside alone. Billy hoped that Cornelius would be waiting inside the ship, bright-eyed and rosy-cheeked, ready to warm Billy's cold lips with his own.

**Author's Note:**

> If you're reading this canon-blind, I feel a little bad for writing fluff for a canon that's wall-to-wall character death and grimdark misery porn (spoilers for history?). This is not a canon gay ship that gets a happy ending (even by Terror standards), but they are a canon gay ship!


End file.
